Photo by 🇨🇠Claudio Schwarz | @purzlbaum on Unsplash
Software and operating systems are being updated and upgraded all the time.
Android 10 from Google, iOS 13 and MacOS 10.15 from Apple are being released. I thought a few words about upgrading and updating operating systems would be in order.
There are two distinct camps when it comes to this question.
Camp 1:
Upgrade now to get the new shiny look and awesome features!
Camp 2:
Wait a month or two to let all the first people iron out the bugs and instability in the new system.
Camp 1.
Quite a lot of these folk are also the ones who buy new kit when it is launched. They will have new iPhones or new Pixel devices that already come with the new OS from the start. I like to think of them as the guinea pigs and beta testers for the rest of us.
There are always some bugs and issues with new products and new operating systems. Despite what manufacturers tell us nothing is ever perfect straight out of the box.
Despite that most stuff these days does work pretty well when first released.
So, adopting early means you get to try the new features first.
Camp 2
These people are the more cautious type. Their current setup works just fine and they don’t want it messed up. They are happy to wait and see and then upgrade/update a month or two later. This will give time for any problems and bugs to be highlighted and fixed.
When they do eventually upgrade the system will be a more stable version. They should have fewer teething problems with the new software.
Computer OS upgrades.
There is a slightly different approach to this, especially for business users. When new operating systems are released there is always a chance older software may not work as it did. This is especially true of the latest macOS 10.15 release as it no longer supports 32-bit applications. Therefore anyone using 32-bit software will have problems if they upgrade.
A circumspect approach is recommended, especially if you have business critical software. It is essential to ensure your software will work as it did on any new system. The software developer themselves should be able to confirm this. It may mean you have to upgrade the software when you upgrade the operating system.
Verdict
My opinion is firmly in Camp 2.
It is nice to have the latest apps or features but only if they are problem free.
With software it is always better to wait a while before committing to an upgrade.
However, in some cases if you wait too long your old system may become more vulnerable to attack from malware and cyber-crime.
Finally- upgrading for security reasons is always a must.
As usual, if you have any thoughts or questions please get in touch.
